Our Souls Weep
by Vincent Loneheart
Summary: Quisjin. Ack, is that even a term!?!?!?


Our Souls Weep-  
  
He sat at the bar. The tanned individual just sat on his stool looking at his glass. As he played with the small glass, the moisture dampened his fingertips. His loneliness showed on his face, agony etching. The bartender came over and gave him a nudge. His break was over.  
As she walked in, he was put into a trance. Her long blonde hair came down past her shoulders, touching the dark purple dress which hugged her body. The glittering of the dress shone through the whole room as a coat-boy took her jacket. Her eyes swept the room, searching. She moved over to the spare table. As she sat, her head fell.   
He came behind the bar and resumed his work, glancing occasionally towards the melancholic splendour who was seated alone. "Such a lady should not be unaccompanied," he thought. The lady whom he watched, he knew well. He knew her history, and she knew his. He would have been embarrassed had she saw him there. His bright future was now decimated after the death of his close friends. His lack of direction had led him to a remedial job where he had to wear a stupid uniform and collect glasses from the drinkers for a minimum wage. His strength was good now only for changing the barrels in the cellar.   
She had been left with nothing now. The one she had loved for so long had found another one to cradle in his arms. The lion was watching over the sorceress. There was nothing she could do about it. She tried, she really did. Her confession of love had only served to alienate her from her friends, and so she drinks alone. They were all out celebrating in the lights of Deling, whereas she was left in the dark, dank Dollet bar.   
The bar used candlelight to set the calm atmosphere. The music was supplied by a blues player who was fingering a slow, romantic ballad of lost love and a love unknown. Every note produced a tear in her heart. His eyes were blank as she wept into her napkin. There was nothing he could do to ease her sorrow. As she raised her head, the flickering flame lightened her face, making the stream of tears visible.   
Those present didn't seem to notice the aura of sadness that surrounded her. They all continued whispering amongst themselves, wary of drowning out the sax player. As he finished his song, there were a few claps from his audience. She seemed impervious to all the outside commotion, and remained still, no movement whatsoever.  
As the hours moved on, she had a small collection of used glasses. Raijin had made no effort to go collect them, despite the incessant requests of his boss. He simply watched her. Every sway of her head was matched by his own. He was mesmerised by her radiance. It was strange how no-one had made any attempt to make a move on her, like all the men there were avoiding her. He knew her passion. He knew the kind of woman she was. Quistis Trepe.   
The men at the bar whistled him over to get them another round. Each drink he pulled was slower than the last. Looks of impatience came over the group, and when the time to pay arrived, they left no tip, and simply threw the money behind the counter. He slowly bent down the pick up the gil, and as he did so, he saw a pair of shoes before him. "Why hasn't that ladies table been cleared? She has had only four drinks since she got here and is taking up valuable space." Raijin stood up to meet his boss in the eye.  
Instead of make a scene though, Raijin nodded. As he made his way over to Quistis' table, some drunken idiot made rather obscene gestures towards the gentle giant. Raijin stopped to look towards the dark haired man. He knew who this was. He was a regular there. His name was Ronin. The two had never really made any small talk like barmen and customers do. In fact, Raijin was always silent behind he bar, and had repeatedly gotten told off for it. Barmen were supposed to lend an ear every now and then.   
Ronin motioned towards the door, and walked through the rear exit. Raijin had seen many fights before here, and rather than destroy the establishment, which would result in his job loss, he followed. He didn't want to fight Ronin, and tried to calm the man down in the alley. The rain outside poured down, as it did in winter, and in the sharp droplets from the sky, the men shouted over the booming of water on rooftops.   
The messages they exchanged were jumbled up and neither could truly hear the others remarks, but it took only a few seconds for their tempers to flare up. Ronin dashed forward through the mist and landed a blow to the cheek of Raijin. The bartender staggered back into a pile of flats. He quickly got up, but was punched in the nose. It began to bleed with intent, and the rainwater in the alley was reddening. As Raijin's eyes struggled to focus, Ronin picked up a weapon and bashed it over the former Garden student's head. As he fell to the floor, a hoarse laugh from the drunk filled the air. Raijin was left lying in the gutter, blood pouring from his head, his uniform soaked through.  
Ronin hurriedly made his escape. After stumbling over a few crates, he disappeared from view. The door opened and out stepped Janice, a co-worker. Raijin let out a small groan, and she did the same. She picked him up and brought him inside. The boss looked very angry and rushed over. Ushering him into the Men's Room, he gave him a towel and some bandages. Looking at himself in the mirror, Raijin saw a shadow of his previous self. Seifer wouldn't have let him lose that fight. Ronin was a civilian, not a warrior. Fujin would have beaten him senseless, had she been around...  
Raijin washed himself over and fixed up the cuts. His nose didn't appear to be broken, although he felt a lot of pain in his cheek. "I'll see a doctor in the morning," he thought. He put on his spare suit, and returned to the bar. The boss gave him the quick once over before allowing him to continue his shift. Quistis was still seated in the same position, and he had to go over there.   
He reached her table and began to pick up the vodka glasses she had. She looked up towards Raijin, and as he stared into her eyes, he swore to himself that they had never looked so beautiful. "Oh.........hi."  
"Umm......ah.....hi.....Instructor." As a silence set in, both let out a small sigh, before he moved away, back to the bar.   
As the clock struck midnight, last orders were called. While everyone moved over to get in their final drink, Quistis slipped through the door. Only Raijin noticed. He grabbed his coat and made for the door. His boss shouted him back, but Raijin felt the need to go.  
The rain had subsided now, and the moonlight peered through the clouds. Quistis was walking at a snail's pace down to the hotel. Raijin stopped as he exited the bar, and had only a second to decide. He gave chase, and it wasn't long before he caught up. The two talked awkwardly in the street for a moment, with a succession of "Umm's" and "Ahhh's" plaguing the conversation. Raijin offered to walk her back, and she just slowly nodded the one time.   
The heels of her shoes made a soft noise on the ground as she walked the path. She wasn't drunk, yet she was light-headed. She talked, and he listened. Both were glad of the company really. It had been months since Raijin had spoke with anyone he knew. Janice tried to get to know him, but he didn't really care. No-one could replace his posse. He wasn't the carefree fighter he used to be, he had become weighed down by his own guilt. Fujin had ordered him to leave the Pandora, as she left to save Seifer. During the compression of time, it had fallen into the sea. The two were now in their aquatic graves. He should've died with them, yet, in a sense, he did.  
As they reached the fountain in the town square, they turned to each other. It had been nice seeing a familiar face. He made to leave, but she reached for his arm and pulled him back. She didn't want him to go, not just yet. She looked at him with such forlorn eyes, both wanted to cry. "Please?" He could not resist her soft, angelic voice. He couldn't say no to her.  
They reached her room, and she turned the key. Raijin surveyed the suite, and saw the true magnificence that is. It was fitting such a woman would stay in such a place. Quistis went into the bathroom, and Raijin stopped in front of a mirror. His right cheek was bruised, quite severely. The lights were on pretty low, so it shouldn't be too easy to spot.   
As Quistis came out, she was dressed in her night gown. It was white, made of silk. As it shimmered, the ripples looked like mighty waves on the great ocean. As she let her hair down, it was like a flash of sunlight shone upon the room. Raijin looked awe-struck at the vision before him. Quistis lit an open fire which bathed them both in a ruby glow.   
They sat down on the couch and continued to talk. Their voices were barely audible as they spoke into each others ear. A tear fell from her eye as she confessed all her emotions. Every pent up feeling and frustration she had, she told Raijin. His big finger stroked her face, absorbing the tear. She looked up at him, and just collapsed in his arms. His arms around her body, her head resting on his shoulders, they closed their eyes, and dreamt of a better tomorrow. The fire died, and darkness enveloped the room..........  
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End file.
